The usual thing after a breakup is ghosting each other on social media, mostly because nobody wants to look desperate for someone's attention or to look like stalkers. But if your ex still watches your Instagram stories, what could it mean? That's the most common question you may ask yourself. It doesn't matter if you've been broken up for a while or you've separated just recently; it might mean something. "My ex watches all my Instagram stories," that's something I hear quite a lot. They might do it accidentally, but usually, they do it on purpose. Here are six possible explanations and answers to this common question.
"My Ex Watches My Instagram Stories." Why?
There might be plenty of reasons why your ex keeps tracking your social media stories that you post. The more you post, the faster he manages to see it. So, what could that mean?
1. They want to see if you are happy without them
If they are one of the top viewers, that could mean that they're secretly stalking you, because Instagram app ranks viewers not by accident, but by the connection you have with those users. If you don't watch their stories at all and they still are one of the top on your list of viewers, there is a high possibility that they are stalking you because they want to see how you're doing without them. Maybe they want you to actually be sad and expect some sad song lyrics or subliminal messages related to them because they want to feed their ego. Or they are just checking on you and want to be sure that you're not doing so well when they are not around, especially if your breakup wasn't so easy.
2. They miss you and want to show you that they are still interested in you
Maybe they are trying to send you the signal that they still think about you every day and want to know if you've found someone new or something like that. Maybe they wait the perfect moment to jump into your DMs, or they're trying to find out if you are still interested in them. If you post happy stories with your friends or your relaxing morning routines but nothing related to them, they might stalk you even more, because they desperately want to know how you feel. You can check this by posting something that has a certain connection to your relationship and see if they respond to it.
3. They are just curious
When I asked our mutual friends if they knew why my ex watches my Instagram stories, they told me that he simply wanted to know how I'm doing since he's not a part of my life anymore. Maybe your ex does the same. They want to know how interesting your life is and how much it has changed. Let's be honest, we are all curious about our exes' lives. Probably because we want to see how much impact we had on someone's lives. Maybe your ex does the same, and they don't care if they're going to look like they're stalking you and seeking your attention.
4. They accidentally do it
It's a bit childish to unfollow each other on Instagram only because you're not in a relationship. People usually mindlessly scroll through other people's stories and they don't know whose post is next in line. They might have stumbled upon your stories by accident and just casually viewed them. If they, for example, skip your last stories when you posted more than two or three, or they just view the first one, that means that they probably don't want to view them, so they just swipe up. You can test it by posting more than two or three stories in one day.
5. They are bored
Instagram is one of the most used social media apps out there, and people spend approximately one to three hours using it. Maybe your ex just wants to kill their time by watching everyone's stories, including yours. There is nothing wrong about it, and you probably know them well enough to figure out if this is true or not. If they are a busy bee, then this is perhaps not the case, but if they normally like spending time on social media, why wouldn't it be?
6. They want to keep a friendly relationship with you
Maybe they just don't want to seem hostile or like they have some kind of a grudge if you have decided to be just friends after a breakup. Even if friendships after separation are pretty rare, and people usually completely part ways after everything ends. I don't know if you two decided to be friends, but if you're not on bad terms, maybe they are trying to tell you, "I have nothing against you, whatever happened between us." Sometimes people break up and stay on good terms, but they feel a bit bitter as if that other person hurt them. Therefore, maybe their views are there to tell you that they are not hostile towards you and that you have nothing to worry about. Skipping your story and reluctance to view them might mean that they are mad, so they want to assure you that you are on good terms.
Summary
If your ex watches your Instagram stories all the time, there is around 60-70% chance that he intentionally does it. The reasons might vary, and there might be some other reason other than these six. Nevertheless, these reasons, without a doubt, are the most frequent. Who knows, maybe he still wants you back? If he is in one of the top viewers, he seems to like your Instagram stories, and that could mean something.
On the other hand, maybe he is just bored, and he frequently looks at everyone's stories. Perhaps he has nothing else to do. Try to find more clues about his behavior. For example, whether he's liking your posts. That might help you to find the answer.